Versute Sharpshooters (Graphocephala Versuta), Taken October 15, 2023, In Georgia, US

Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos), taken March 9, 2025, in Georgia, US

I haven't been out in a few days, so have this month-old mockingbird lol. There's something about the composition of this photo that is just really nice. I love the lighting, and the way the mockingbird kind of blends into the background is visually appealing! This specific pair has made a nest in a tree next to my house, so we may get to see babies at the feeders this spring!

Chinese Mantis (Tenodera sinensis), nymph, taken April 19, 2025, in Georgia, US

My first mantis of the year! I just happened to see this guy parkouring away from me while I was focused on a damselfly. I had to lose the damselfly, but it was worth it since mantises are rarer! Chinese Mantises are quite controversial insects, since it is unsure whether they are an invasive species or a non-native naturalized one due to lack of definitive evidence. Many people destroy chinese mantis oothecas and kill the insects on sight, but I am much more partial to letting them live. I have seen several people claim that they are bad because they kill hummingbirds and other pollinators, while I have witnessed more carolina mantises doing this than chinese! My area is not very plagued by chinese mantises, with me seeing only 2 chinese vs. 7 carolina last year, and none vs. 5 carolina in 2023. It's an interesting debate, but chinese mantises have been in the US for over a century. If they aren't already, they're likely getting to the point of naturalization soon.

Still a bit too early in the year for my mothing sheet to be as busy as I'd like, but I've still gotten a handful of interesting visitors

Ichneumonid Wasps(Family Ichneumonidae), Genus Raphia Ornate Tiger Moth(Apantesis ornata), Genus Eteobalea Genus Cameraria, White-lined Sphinx(Hyles lineata) Marbled Oak Dagger(Acronicta marmorata), Leaf Blotch Miner Moths(Family Gracillariidae) Two-spotted Leafhopper(Sophonia orientalis), Zale Moths(Genus Zale)

Globular Springtails (Order Symphypleona), taken March 20, 2025, in Georgia, US

In order of appearance: Ptenothrix curvilineata (1), undescribed Dicyrtoma sp. (2), Ptenothrix marmorata (3), undescribed/unknown Ptenothrix sp. (4)

I've been in a globular springtail phase for a couple months now, and the past few days I've been doubling down in my efforts to find as many as possible. I spent a couple hours yesterday digging through dead wood and found and photographed 40 individuals! I love the diversity of patterning in this group—they're absolutely tiny, but so so gorgeous.

P. marmorata is definitely the most common customer in my part of the woods, but I found lots of the 4th individual as well. That guy is a bit of a strange situation, since it might actually be a regional color morph variant of P. marmorata! It doesn't look much like it, but animals are weird and this stuff happens sometimes. Hopefully we find out what it is soon!

Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater), juvenile, taken May 27, 2024, in Georgia, US

Fledgeling season is so fun when there's a bird bath because you get to see baby birds have pool parties! This particular individual injured its leg in some way and lived exclusively at our feeders for weeks, eating seeds off the ground and begging for handouts from any adult bird who got close lol. Surprisingly, it didn't get picked off and its leg ended up healing, so we got to see it reach adulthood with its siblings!

Red-winged Blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus), males & juvenile male (2), taken February 25, 2025, in Georgia, US

More blackbirds!! Migrating flocks are still passing through all day, so there are plenty of opportunities to get pictures. The video is of one of them shuffling around on their preferred perch, participating in the cacophony of calls. They're so much louder in person...

Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis), taken March 9, 2025, in Georgia, US

Despite how common they seem to be for many other people, this is the first time I've ever seen a junco! It approached me from behind and I only realized it was there because I happened to see it out of the corner of my eye. I barely got a look before it flew off, so I had no idea what it was, only that it wasn't a bird I'd seen before. It took me another 10 minutes before I even saw it again, then another 5 or so for it to end up behind me where it started. In the end, I was able to get a good picture!

Crab Spiders (Genus Mecaphesa), taken April 12, 2025, in Georgia, US

Some crab spiders hiding underneath flowers! This is a known undescribed species, currently labeled "black tibia spot" (for obvious reasons) as far as I know. I see them pretty often hanging out, especially on fleabane flowers like this. Crab spiders are ambush predators, and most in the genus Mecaphesa lie in wait on similarly-colored flowers until a prey item (flies, beetles, and perhaps small bees) lands on it. The spider quickly overtakes its prey and hides underneath the petals of the flower to enjoy. A rather boring life for us, but these guys don't seem to mind!

Sawfly (Genus Dolerus), taken March 7, 2025, in Georgia, US

'Tis the season for sawflies! I've only seen two so far, but more are certainly to come. This guy was quite striking, being bright red! Until now, I've only seen black sawflies in person, so I actually thought this was some kind of blood bee (Genus Sphecodes) until I put it into iNat lol! However, if you look closer, you can tell that the body is almost fully red, the antennae are not elbowed, and the head isn't really bee-shaped. What a cool find! Here's to hoping I see more!

Oak Treehopper (Platycotis vittata), taken October 23, 2024, in Georgia, US

A beautiful, freshly-peeled treehopper! This was my first time seeing one of these guys in person, and their colors are just magnificent. This species has two main morphs: one with a horn on the pronotum (one of the segments on the back) and one without. It would have been nice to see a horn-morph individual, but this one is nice as well!